Aura Aero has taken the wraps off a series of new cabin configurations for its hybrid-electric ERA, a regional aircraft it plans to have in service by 2030.
Covering a spectrum of use cases from an eight-seat VIP layout at one extreme to a 19-passenger high-density regional cabin at the other, the updated cabin configurations are based on feedback from the market and modifications to the ERA’s design.
Mattia Padulo, chief technology officer and ERA chief engineer, says Aura has conducted an “optimisation” of the aircraft “especially with respect to the passenger door”, enabling the new layout.
The front-left passenger door is now larger, and also functions as a cargo door, freeing up space at the rear of the aircraft “which helps to optimise the seating arrangement”.
In the regional space, three cabin layouts are offered, with 16, 18, or 19 seats. Above that sits a nine-passenger all-business cabin, topped off by the VIP interior with a club-configured eight-seat layout.
Combined with the large cabin volume and 1.88m (74in) height “this offers a very promising solution for a market that is looking for sustainable options, at least for very small routes,” says Padulo.
Meanwhile, the cargo configuration offers volume of 21.5cu m (760cu ft), what Padulo calls the “sweet spot” for carriers running smaller operations who are also looking to reduce operating costs and emissions.
These could be 50% less than those of legacy aircraft, he suggests.
To date, Aura has taken 700 letters of intent for the ERA, alongside 20 firm orders with another 19 to be unveiled shortly, he adds.
Aura is targeting a first flight for the ERA in late 2027, says chief executive Jeremy Caussade.
“The first one is to build the case, to assess where we stand compared to what’s been asked,” he says.
A second example will likely arrive around six to eight months after the maiden sortie, offering “enough time in between to correct some of the things we see on the first one”.
In all, Aura plans to build three to four prototypes for the certification campaign.
Partners on the programme include Safran, which is supplying the ERA’s eight electric motors and two turbogenerators.
Airbus is also collaborating on the development, with its Protect unit providing cyber-security services.
But, says Caussade, the airframer is also co-operating in other areas including engineering “developing key competencies, in particular for hybrid technologies”.
“A significant part of what we are doing [together] is non-public… but the idea is that we are in the same garden and we try to maximise the commonalities we can get together.”
Aura is also proposing a military version of the ERA which it calls the Intruder and is set to arrive after certification is secured for the civil aircraft in around 2030.
Caussade sees several use cases for the Intruder, including “silent and discrete” troop insertions, electronic warfare missions – enabled by its long loiter time and 600kW of available electrical power at altitude – and as a trainer for transport aircraft pilots.
The post Cabin fever: Aura Aero reveals new interiors for developmental ERA first appeared on FlightGlobal.